Crisis Response

Averting famine

In recent years, a combination of armed conflict, climatic shocks and long-standing socioeconomic and governance deficits in north-east Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen have led to acute humanitarian emergencies and famine or near famine situations.

Such crises are closely linked to conflict, fragility, and insecurity. The United Nations is leading efforts by humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding partners in all four countries, delivering urgent aid and building resilience among vulnerable people over the longer term.

UNDP has maintained a robust, long-term presence in all four affected countries and has mobilized quickly to revitalize communities and economies.

North-east Nigeria

In north-east Nigeria, 5.1 million people urgently need food and livelihoods assistance resulting from long-term social, political, and economic exclusion, along with violent conflict and widespread insecurity. UNDP is expanding its early recovery work in the region by delivering an holistic recovery package that aims to stabilize communities, ensuring access to basic services like education, healthcare, and potable water; providing both immediate and sustainable economic opportunities; and reviving local governance structures.

Somalia

Somalia today is once again confronted with mass famine. The lack of adequate rainfall over two consecutive seasons in 2015 and 2016 led to the failure of crop production and livestock deaths at a massive scale and rapid increases in the incidence of food insecurity, malnutrition, disease and population displacement. UNDP primarily supports the government to coordinate the response and address the root causes of the ongoing crisis, to break the ‘vicious cycle’ of natural disasters and emergencies.

South Sudan

Following the independence of South Sudan in 2011, nascent state-building and development efforts were reversed catastrophically by a political power struggle within the country’s ruling party in 2013, which rapidly escalated into a full civil war across ethnic lines and several states. UNDP, UNICEF, WFP, and FAO are working together to prevent the famine from spreading into other vulnerable areas—focusing on livelihoods, food security, local economic revitalization, basic services, and peace and reconciliation.

Yemen

Yemenis today in its third year of a complex and brutal conflict, with no end in sight. The human impact of the violence and destabilization it has engendered has been devastating – and is getting worse. Over 20.7 million people (over 75% of the population) require humanitarian assistance and protection, with 9.8 requiring urgent life-saving assistance. UNDP is responding in ways that promise maximum immediate impact at the community level, helping vulnerable people meet their most urgent needs while building resilience to future shocks. Working with local partners, we are improving service delivery and local governance to help Yemen to build back better and stronger than before.